The World From A to Z Quiz 9/19/25

What nation’s capital is Manila, where rising sea levels and groundwater extraction are both being blamed for the sinking of islands that are home to thousands of people?

• Indonesia

• Philippines

• Thailand

• Vietnam

A cruise ship company and an ice cream company recently teamed up to make what new ice cream “flavor” (though it’s actually said to taste like vanilla, coconut cream and salt)?

• Sea Breeze

• Sunscreen

• Ocean Mist

• Sailor’s Delight

Early this week, a U.S. trade official said a deal was in the works with China that would include the sale of a popular social media app to an American company. Name this app.

• Instagram

• Snapchat

• TikTok

• X (Twitter)

With thousands of visitors, elaborate costumes, and a nostalgic parade, the British city of Bath is marking 250 years since the birth of what famous English novelist?

• Charles Dickens

• Jane Austen

• Emily Brontë

• William Shakespeare

In what Asian country was the gaming app Discord used to help choose the nation’s interim (temporary) prime minister, days after its former leader resigned following violent protests?

• Nepal

• India

• Bangladesh

• Sri Lanka

What significant event took place on September 17, 1787, giving rise to an occasion that the U.S. marks every year on that date (and which we marked with a special quiz)?

• The signing of the Declaration of Independence

• The ratification of the Bill of Rights

• The signing of the U.S. Constitution

• The end of the Revolutionary War

What nation celebrated its Independence Day this week, holding traditional ceremonies and a military parade being led by a woman (President Claudia Sheinbaum) for the first time?

• Brazil

• Mexico

• Argentina

• Colombia

What is the name of America’s central bank, a system that lowered its key interest rate by a quarter point amid its concerns about a weakening U.S. jobs market?

• Treasury Department

• The Federal Reserve (The Fed)

• World Bank

• International Monetary Fund

What U.S. Founding Father, the first to sign the Constitution, was also the person who laid the Capitol’s cornerstone on September 18, 1793 – though its whereabouts are unknown?

• Benjamin Franklin

• John Adams

• George Washington

• Thomas Jefferson

In what South American nation would you find the ancient Inca site Machu Picchu, where recent protests have stranded hundreds of tourists and contributed to a travel warning?

• Chile

• Peru

• Bolivia

• Ecuador